This paper has been retracted.

Effect of Ivermectin on Time to Resolution of Symptoms in Adults with Mild COVID-19

JAMA. 2021;325(14):1426-1435. doi:10.1001/jama.2021.3071

Commentary

This study was designed to determine whether ivermectin is an effective treatment for mild COVID-19, as it is widely prescribed as a potential treatment for COVID-19 despite uncertainty about its clinical benefit.

A total of 476 adult patients with mild disease or symptoms within 7 days from July 15, 2020 to November 30, 2020 were included in the study and were followed until December 21, 2020.

Subjects were randomized to receive ivermectin at 300 µg/kg body weight/day for 5 days (n = 200) or placebo (n = 200) in a randomized design.

As a result, of the 400 patients randomized in the primary analysis population (median age, 37 years [interquartile range {IQR}, 29-48]; 231 women [58%]), 398 (99.5%) completed the study. The median time to resolution of symptoms was 10 days in the ivermectin group and 12 days in the placebo group.

By day 21, 82% of patients in the ivermectin group and 79% of patients in the placebo group reported resolution of symptoms. The most common adverse event reported by subjects was headache, which was reported by 104 patients (52%) who received ivermectin and 111 patients (56%) who received placebo.

And the serious adverse event was multiple organ failure, which occurred in four patients (two in each group).

These results indicate that 5 days of ivermectin treatment in adults with mildly determined COVID-19 does not significantly improve the time to resolution of symptoms when compared to placebo.